


Alternative/s

by Saanak



Category: Captain Marvel (2019), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, F/F, Family Feels, powered!Maria, reverse au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-04
Updated: 2020-02-21
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:54:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,375
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22562815
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Saanak/pseuds/Saanak
Summary: Every single day of Carol Danvers' life was filled with regret. If she had taken that shortcut on that faithful day, she would have been the one to find Lawson and leave with her.ORMaria beats Carol to the Pegasus base and is the one taken by the Kree.
Relationships: Carol Danvers & Maria Rambeau & Monica Rambeau, Carol Danvers/Maria Rambeau
Comments: 22
Kudos: 77





	1. Chapter 1

_“Maria, think of Monica!”_

_“I do, that’s why I’m doing it! There’s no time Carol, I’m going with Lawson!”_

* * *

Carol woke up at dawn, even if her days in the military were long gone. Her sleep was plagued with nightmares anyway, and she had no desire to toss and turn for hours in the slight hope of catching a few more minutes of sleep.

She put her feet slowly on the floorboard, taking a deep breath. The memories of her nightmare were starting to lose their details, but the feeling of despair remained. It was always the same. And the worst part was… it wasn’t just a dream. She did arrive too late that day.

There was not a day that passed that Carol Danvers didn’t regret following the rules that faithful day. If she had taken that shortcut, she would have been the one to find Lawson and leave with her and Maria…

She shook her head and got to her feet. There was no use in revisiting the past. Monica had lost her mother 6 years ago, and Carol had lost...

She got out of her bedroom – basically a closet, but still feeling too large, too empty – and checked on Monica. The 10-year-old was still sound asleep – her nightmares were becoming less frequent as the years passed, but were still happening often enough for Carol to still have the ‘nightmare kit’ at the ready under her bed.

Monica turned in her bed and mumbled something about aliens. Carol smiled – Monica certainly had a wild imagination.

Monica didn’t technically live with her, and Carol had no guardianship over Monica. Maria’s parents had immediately come to take their grand-daughter to Louisiana when Maria had… disappeared. With Lawson and Maria gone, staying in the Air Force had proven to be difficult. Carol had fought for Maria’s death to be recognized, but the level of secrecy around the project Pegasus was so high that the project and its participants were buried in the archives without any recognition.

And Maria’s parents had made it clear that Monica wasn’t leaving Louisiana any time soon. Without Maria and without the flying, Carol would have probably wallowed in despair for a while. But Monica was still there, and being here for her became Carol’s number one priority, even if it meant moving to the other side of the country – not that she had much left in Nevada anyway.

On a particularly bad night, Monica’s grand-parents hadn’t been able to calm her down and they had called Carol. While still in Nevada, she had managed to calm Monica by her voice alone. After that, Monica’s grand-parents had realized how important Carol was to their grand-daughter and had agreed that the two of them should be able to see each other.

Carol had found a house not too far from theirs – the ten-minute drive only seemed too long when Monica was having nightmares.

* * *

“ _What_ are you?” Fury asked.

“I’m M’Beau.”

* * *

Somewhere between their first meeting and their barely-made-it escape from Pegasus, Maria and Fury had become… not friends, but people that somehow trusted each other. But _not_ friends. You don’t make friends with locals on a strange and backward planet that doesn’t even have a decent interplanetary message system. And he called her “young lady” which she _really_ didn’t like. But he was all she had for the time being.

“Nervous?” Fury asked as they approached a tiny house beside a huge warehouse. The trip to Louisiana had been much too fast to her taste.

Maria considered the question. “This woman might have answers about my past, but she could also have no memories of me.” They had placed all their hopes in that one woman they knew basically nothing about.

Fury looked doubtful. “You seemed pretty chummy in those photos, surely she remembers you!”

She landed the plane without difficulty in a clearing near the house, and they approached on foot. They were about 20 m away from the house when they heard noise from behind them.

“Mom?!”

She turned around, instinct making her react before any conscious choice could be made.

“It’s you, it’s really you!” the youthful voice said.

A child was running toward her, and the moment Maria was able to distinguish her face…

“Monica.” A single word, a simple name, her whole world.

She fell to her knees, overcome with the feeling that she had finally found what was missing, what her heart had been yearning for all those years. That child, that child had meant everything to her in a previous life.

A thousand memories flashed through her mind – the process almost painful – it felt like her brain was rewiring itself – but the memories were filled with love and happiness and everything _Monica_ and Maria realized with dread that she had missed _6 years_.

A second later, her baby girl was in her arms and nothing else mattered than remembering her _daughter_ – and to think for six years she had believed she was without family! – and hugging her for the first time in years.

“Monica! You can’t go up and running toward strang-“

The shout made Maria look up, and a blonde woman ran towards them as well, only to stop when she saw who Monica was with.

“Maria?”

The blonde – Carol Danvers, if the files were correct – seemed in shock.

“How are you… How can this…?”

Fury intervened. “Not that I’m one to break up family reunions, but this is a matter of national security, Ma’am, so if we could talk about this inside, that would great.”

Carol stopped staring at Maria and straightened herself in a way that betrayed her military past. She took one look at Fury, looked again quickly at Monica, who was still holding onto Maria like a lifeline, and nodded towards the house.

“Come in.”

* * *

As soon as they were all settled at the table, Maria told them everything that had happened, briefly explaining the Kree taking her in after finding her, being kidnapped by Talos and landing on Earth.

Monica listened to her with rapt attention and looked like she had a million questions, but it was Carol who spoke as soon as Maria was done.

“Aliens? Spaceships? Have you lost your mind?”

The disbelief in Danvers’ voice hurt, even though Maria’s memories of her were fuzzy at best – she knew Carol had played an important role in her life, since Monica was living with her instead of – shit.

Her mind was suddenly filled with dread, and instead of answering Danvers’ question, she asked in a chocked up voice: “Are my parents…”. She couldn’t bear to finish her question, but Carol seemed to understand her.

“They’re alive,” she reassured Maria. “They’re fine. Monica lives with them.”

All those information was delivered coldly, without any emotion. Carol’s demeanour was in total contradiction with the rare memories Maria had of her and even Monica seemed surprised by Carol’s lack of warmth.

Breaking the tense atmosphere, Monica asked for a demonstration of Maria's powers and Maria was more than happy to impress her daughter and heat up the kettle. Excitedly, her daughter announced that they had some of her stuff in the house, and Maria gestured to Fury to follow her.

Maria found herself alone with Carol, who wouldn’t look at her. After a few seconds of silence, Maria decided to take the bull by the horns and sat across Carol.

“Hey, I’m sorry if this is difficult for you but-“

“Difficult?” Carol laughed mirthlessly. “Do you have any idea what it’s like to mourn your lov- best friend who left you in charge of her child for six years? Do you know how fucking hard it was to explain to a four year old that her mom was gone forever and that all she had now was her Aunty Carol and her grand-parents?!”

Carol looked Maria in the eyes and the pain - raw and unadulterated - on her face almost broke Maria’s heart.

“At least you remember Monica,” Carol murmured, all anger gone from her voice. “It would have been…,” she shook her head, the idea of Maria not remembering Monica apparently too painful to even be expressed.

“I get flashes,” Maria said, because it seemed of utter importance that Carol knew that she remembered some things. “You’re in most of them,” she added with a small smile, “but I… can’t make sense of most of it. If you could help me remember the crash, maybe it would help.”

Carol closed her eyes for an instant, then started talking.

“I came to wake you up, around 5 I think. And I”, Carol sighed, “I dared you to race me with your Camaro to the base.” She paused, shaking her head. “I had planned to take a shortcut to beat you there, even if it was against the rules. But I didn’t. And when I arrived, Lawson was agitated and you were already suiting up for the flight.” Carol looked at her: “Not taking that shortcut is the biggest regret of my life.”

“You don’t seem like the type who respects the rules.”

Carol shrugged. “I guess you put me on a straighter path.”

Maria’s answer came out of nowhere – or at least it was not something she thought of consciously. “You could never be straight around me.”

Carol seemed to go through a myriad of emotions in a few seconds, but the sad smile that appeared on her face was no less heart wrenching than the look she sported before, clenching at Maria’s heart like nothing had in all her years with the Krees. “No, I guess I couldn’t,” Carol replied.

“I’m sorry, I don’t know why I said that.” It was _frustrating,_ not knowing. She felt like she _should_ know, the answer right there and obvious, like it had been with Monica.

And she figured, if she could take 5 minutes to herself, she could piece it together – the puzzle that was hers and Carol’s relationship.

But Maria didn’t have 5 minutes, and Monica and Fury called them to the living room, where a dozen of photos were scattered on the table.

There was not much, since her parents had kept most of her belongings, but Monica must have ‘borrowed’ a few pictures for Carol.

There was also a track field medal and a few concert tickets. A few photos of her youth, some from her teenage years, of her high school graduation. And then Carol _appeared_ on the photos, along with the group pictures at the army. Photos of them at Poncho’s, of that concert they had gone to and managed to get tickets at the last minute. There was even a photograph of Monica’s father – she _knew_ it was him by the way his eyes crinkled just like Monica’s – but he was gone before Monica herself made her appearance. Carol remained.

The last photo was of the 3 of them, taken a few days before the crash, Monica told her.

She felt the 3 pairs of eyes on her, studying her reactions.

Pieces of memories came back. Her first win on the track field, the first time she kissed a boy, the first time she kissed…

Carol’s neighbour knocked, and Maria's protective instincts were back on. The Skrulls could be anywhere, _anyone_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been thinking about this fic and writing bits of it for months, and I can basically no longer look at it, so I posted it even though I'm not satisfied with it. I might edit it later, who knows.  
> I hope you enjoyed it nonetheless ! Let me know what you thought, kudos and comments are always appreciated! I also take prompts (especially now that it is femslash february), so dont hesitate to hit me up at alexdumas-ghost on tumblr!


	2. Chapter 2

If Carol was freaked out by seeing another version of herself talking to Monica outside, she didn’t show it. She was even the one to realize that Talos feared Goose, which remained… unexplainable. Maybe aliens could be allergic to Earth animals?

Then there was Talos with the recording of what had happened the day of the crash. Every single thing Maria thought she knew about the Skrull was a lie. Everything that Yon-Rogg had told her was a lie, but somehow she wasn’t _that_ surprised. A part of her had never truly believed him. But at the time, she had no way to check if what he told her was true. Now she had, and that gut feeling she had had for six years turned out to be a good instinct.

They needed to act fast, or the Kree would find Lawson’s – or rather Mar-Vell – lab first. Talos’ scientist offered to modify the plane Fury and Maria had used to flee Pegasus, and it was suddenly all settled. The rest of the evening was almost… normal, and Monica, Maria and Carol ended up in the living-room.

“I need a co-pilot,” Maria declared.

“You really want to go out there again?” Carol sounded incredulous.

“I need to help them. I’ve been on the wrong side of this war for too long.”

“But what about Monica?”

“Oh, no,” Monica interjected, “she should go. And you need to go with her, Auntie Carol.”

Carol looked at them as if they had both lost their mind.

Maria pressed on. “You’re the best pilot I know. My chances to make it back here would be higher with you. This is the turn you didn’t take last time, Carol. I need you.”

The shock on Carol’s face would probably have been the same if Maria had slapped her. Carol rose from her seat, and Maria’s fears were confirmed: she had gone too far.

“Carol…”

“I need to be alone for a moment. Monica, it’s already way past your bedtime. Your mom will tuck you in tonight.” And Carol went outside.

Monica was everything Maria hoped she would become. She was smart, if a bit too sassy, compassionate and so, so curious. All the thank you’s in the world wouldn’t be enough to tell Carol how grateful Maria was.

“Are you going to see Grandpa and Grandma?” Monica asked in a small voice when Maria tucked her in for the night. The gestures had come back like second nature.

Among all the twists and decisions she had had to make that day, she had forgotten that her parents still didn’t know she was alive. “I will. After we find Lawson’s laboratory.”

Monica nodded, seeming suddenly deep in thought.

“What’s on your mind, hun?”

“Auntie Carol was really sad when you went away. I thought seeing you again would make her happy.”

So Maria hadn’t imagined the coldness of her ex-best friend. “Maybe she needs a little more time to adjust to the idea that I’m back.”

“I think you’re meant to make her happy.”

Monica truly wasn’t 4 year old anymore, and Maria had to blink away the tears she felt rising.

“I’ll see you tomorrow morning alright? It’s getting late.” She kissed Monica’s forehead, and just as she was at the door, came back for one more kiss. “I love you, so much.”

Monica smiled. “Good night, Ma.”

She found Carol on the porch, watching the stars.

“And to think that all this time, you were up there.” Maria felt that Carol was not finished, and refrained from talking. “I won’t let you die if I can help it,” Carol finally declared, “I’m coming with you.”

The next day was a lot. Lawson’s lab was found, with _people_ inside. Then Yon-Rogg and Maria’s ex-teammates showed up.

Confronting the Supreme Intelligence, as painful as it was, was liberating. The second she could feel her powers running through her, she knew they would win. If she had thought that using her powers before felt good, using them at full capacity was exhilarating.

“You’re glowing,” Fury had said.

Though if she was honest, she wasn’t sure what surprised her more that day, Carol being an even more amazing pilot than what her few memories gave away, Goose being… not a cat or Talos having a family.

When she announced over dinner that she would be helping Talos finding the Skrull a new home, she caught the glimpse of a frown from Carol.

After tucking Monica in for the night, she ran into Fury, heading to the guest room. Goose was following him and Maria made sure to stay clear of the not-quite-a-cat’s path.

“She’s in the kitchen,” Fury said, not even specifying who he was talking about, “I believe you two have a conversation or two to finish.” For all his efforts to look aloof, he was truly a kind man – she was glad their paths had crossed. She would still probably be looking for answers on her past if they hadn’t.

“Thanks.” Their eyes met, and she swore she saw a glint of amusement in his eye.

“Give a brother a shout if you’re on this side of the galaxy again?”

She promised, and asked if Carol had agreed to his job offer.

“Nah, she said she was still thinking about it. But I think she still has too much going on here to leave now.”

She found Carol in the kitchen, doing the dishes. It was a familiar sight, such a domestic memory, but Maria felt like she was almost intruding. Carol’s shoulders were tenser than how Maria remembered them. Carol had probably heard Maria come in, but Maria didn’t dare come closer. She stood there and watched, overcome with longing for a life that was long gone.

She remembered the first time she had invited Carol over, and how the blonde had insisted on doing the dishes.

“Today was a lot,” Maria said, breaking the silence.

“That’s one way to put it. To be honest, I’m not sure I have an accurate way of describing the kind of day that you spend helping your best friend that you thought was dead for 6 years, flying in space and fighting aliens,” Carol declared in a dry tone, still washing plates. The fact that she was not stopping, still not watching Maria drove Maria crazy.

Maria finally found the strength to get closer and stand beside Carol.

“Look at me,” she said softly. Almost a plea for her best friend to really, _finally_ , look at her.

Carol stilled for a moment. Then put the plate she was scrubbing on the draining rack and slowly raised her head to meet Maria’s expectant eyes.

The blonde looked exhausted. Whatever Carol saw in Maria’s eyes made her say: “I’m not strong enough to go through this again.”

“What are you –“

“Maria, I can’t say goodbye to you, because if you disappear again the guilt will kill me.”

“I have to help them,” Maria said.

“What if you didn’t?” She was almost surprised that Carol _dared_ suggest that.

“Carol, the Kree are after their entire species, I can’t just-“

“I know,” Carol sighed. “I just wanted to check. But you’re too stubborn for your own good.”

_You love me anyway,_ Maria thought. _Wait_ –

“But,” Carol continued, “I can’t… we can’t let you leave again. Not without us.”

“Sorry?”

“If you go up there, we’re coming with you.” Carol declared, eyes full of resolve.

“But – “ Carol raised her hand, stopping Maria.

“We lost you once. I’m not letting you go again.”

She tried arguing. “Monica is –“

“Smart. And strong, like her mom. She deserves to spend time with you. She _needs_ to spend time with you.”

It made sense. Except that it would mean bringing Monica close, much too close to danger. Maria shook her head. “I know. But bringing her with me is way too dangerous.”

“Then at least take me with you!” Carol cried out, looking desperate. Maria had never seen her that defeated.

“Who will look after our daughter if you –“. She stopped in the middle of her sentence. There it was, the answer to what she had been wondering ever since she had seen Carol.

Carol watched her closely. “Where’s your head at?”

Maria smiled briefly at the mention of the question she used to ask. “That’s why you’ve been so distant.”

“What are you…?”

“Were you even going to tell me? That we were a couple? That the three of us were a family?”

She noticed Carol’s right hand clenching and reached out without thinking, squeezing the hand gently. Carol avoided her eyes.

“It was not my place.”

Anger flared in Maria and she let go of Carol’s hand.

“Whose place could it be?!”

“If you remembered Monica but couldn’t remember our relationship…,” Carol trailed off, clearly not ready to finish that sentence.

Understanding dawned on Maria. “You thought it didn’t matter to me.” But it made no sense. How on Earth would Carol think… “I trusted you with my life for years. I trusted you with my daughter, my secrets, my heart. You supported me as a mother, as a pilot when no one else did. How could you think it didn’t matter?”

“There was no recognition of me in your eyes a day ago.”

Maria never thought a single sentence could hurt so much. And the worst thing was, it was true. Remembering Monica had only taken a seconds, but Carol, while being in most memories involving Monica, seemed to require a more conscious effort to remember.

“I’m sorry,” Maria murmured. “I’ll get out of your hair.”

Carol didn’t stop her from leaving the kitchen, and Maria found herself knocking on Fury’s door. He didn’t seem to need an explanation when he saw her decomposed face, and agreed immediately when she asked him to drive her to her parents’ house.

She was glad she didn’t go alone; Fury’s presence allowing her parents to truly believe she had returned. She left out some details, but if her story was imprecise at times her parents didn’t seem to care.

They were so overjoyed that she couldn’t bring herself to tell them that she would be leaving a few days later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know, I initially said this would be 2 chapters long but the angst got to me and I felt I wouldn't do the characters justice by rushing to a conclusion, so!  
> As usual, you know what they say, a comment a day keeps the writer's block away! (alright, it doesn't, but it certainly motivates me!)


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter guys! I'm pretty happy with this story, I hope you enjoyed it as well! Thanks to everyone you kudo-ed, commented or bookmarked, it means a lot!  
> Enjoy!

She told her mother over breakfast the next day that she would be leaving soon.

Maria's mom shook her head in a very familiar way – the way she used to when Maria was telling her something she already knew. “I figured you wouldn’t be staying long. But I’m not telling that to your father for you.”

That was fine with Maria, who had hoped for some time alone with her father. They had always been close when she was young, sharing a love for flying that hadn’t diminished over the years.

Her father was sitting on the porch, enjoying iced tea while watching birds flying gracefully in the immaculate sky. She sat next to him, simply enjoying his presence for a while. When she finally spoke, he seemed to be expecting her leaving as well. “I’m just glad you’re alive, Ria.” He was the only person who ever called her that. “Are Monica and Carol coming with you?”

“Not you too, Dad,” she sighed.

“What? You’re not planning to travel with them?”

“It won’t be safe, I can’t bring Monica in the middle of a war. And I would rather have Carol stay with her.”

“How long will you be gone?”

When she failed to answer, he continued, gently, like he was treading on a mined field. “Are you really willing to let the two loves of your life behind for God knows how long?”

Tears welled up in her eyes. “I don’t know what to do, Dad.”

He squeezed her knee in a calming gesture. “I think you do, actually. You always overthink Ria, but in the end you know what’s right.” Maybe he had already told her that exact same thing before, whenever she had been at a crossroad in her old life, but even if it was the case it felt new and soothing.

She took a few deep breaths, exhaling slowly. She closed her eyes, enjoying the sun’s warmth. She could feel the energy of the Tesseract flow right under her skin. “I guess I do.”

Fury was just coming back from a walk – he was an early riser too - when she went back inside the house. He had to get going - SHIELD had been looking for him - but he offered Maria a ride back at Carol’s place. It was on the way, he told her parents. (It absolutely was not, but she wasn’t about to argue.)

She hugged her parents tightly. “Thank you so much, for everything.” She knew they would understand that she meant taking care of Monica as well as letting her go.

The car ride conversation was mostly filled by Fury babbling about Goose – he was wondering the does and don’ts of owning a cat that wasn’t exactly a cat – did she eat cat food? Or could human food do?

When they arrived near Carol’s house, Fury slowed down the car. He stayed silent for a few seconds, clearly pondering how to say what he wanted to say.

“Spit it out, Nicholas,” she said without any actual bite behind it.

He laughed briefly. “You get one pass at calling me like that.” She watched him, unimpressed. He cleared his throat. “I know it’s not my place but, I hope you won’t travel alone.”

She played dumb. “Of course I won’t, I will be accompanying Talos.”

It was his turn to watch her with an exasperated expression. “You know what I mean.”

They were finally parked in front of Carol’s.

“Don’t worry, Nick, we will be fine,” she said softly. “And,” she added, exiting the car, “you have my number if anything goes wrong around these parts!”

He chuckled. “That I do. Take care, Rambeau.”

“See you around Fury.”

She entered the house quietly, or so she thought – Monica was running at full speed towards her and she wasn’t even 3 steps in the house.

“Mom!” She hadn’t thought Monica would be up so early. A second later her daughter was hugging her, and she realized a bit too late that Monica was crying.

“Baby what’s wrong? Are you hurt? Are you okay?” She began checking her daughter for injuries.

“I thought…,” Monica sobbed, “I thought you had left. I woke up and you were gone.”

Maria had been so rattled by her conversation with Carol that she had left without leaving a note, assuming she would be back before Monica woke up. She hugged her daughter for a long while, murmuring words of comfort into her ear.

Monica finally calmed down, but Maria still couldn’t find a way to properly apologize to her daughter for scaring her. When she heard Monica’s stomach grumble, she realized that her daughter had not eaten yet.

“How about we make some pancakes?”

Monica’s eyes lit up immediately. “Yes! Grandma says they’re bad for me, and Auntie Carol makes them sometimes, but,” she lowered her voice, apparently letting Maria in on a big secret, “they’re not as good as yours.”

She suddenly hoped her memory would come back quickly, because the recipe for pancakes did not appear among the things she had remembered in the last 48 hours.

Just as Monica was starting to get some ingredients out of the fridge, they heard noise upstairs and soon enough, Carol appeared, bed hair firmly in place, only wearing a long shirt as pyjamas. She didn't look like she had slept at all. Her eyes widened slightly when she saw Maria, but a soft smile promptly appeared on her lips, tinted with guilt. “Hey, welcome back.”

Carol kissed the top of Monica’s head as she grabbed the kettle.

“Allow me,” Maria said, warming up the kettle in a few seconds.

Carol chuckled. “Thanks.”

They talked about nothing over breakfast. When they were done, Monica ran outside to go find Talos’ daughter – the Skrulls, not wanting to invade Carol’s tiny house, had settled on waiting in the ship that had brought them back to Earth.

Carol and Maria found themselves on dish washing duties again. “We need to talk,” Maria said softly.

“Yeah, we do.” Carol motioned to the table, and they sat again, across from each other.

Maria began. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have left like that. I’m sorry I can’t remember everything.”

“No, I’m sorry,” Carol said. She exhaled, her hand combing her hair in an unconscious gesture. “You were brainwashed for years and I was blaming you for not remembering. It’s those Kree assholes I should be blaming. Hell, I wish I had had a proper chance to beat that Yon-Rogg’s ass.”

Maria pondered what to say. It didn’t take her long to decide to go with full honesty. “Remembering Monica is easy. Remembering you… takes more effort, and I wonder if it comes from the fact that our relationship took work as well.”

“You’re saying that I’m a piece of work?” Carol asked, laughing.

“Oh, I figure you’re a pain in the ass,” Maria said with a smile, “but you were my pain in the ass. And being in a relationship with a woman while in the army probably required a lot of attention and work.”

“It was so hard,” Carol admitted, sighing. “We had to be careful all the time, and there were so few people we could trust with the truth.” The blonde swallowed. “Losing you… I couldn’t mourn you. Not properly.”

Carol reached out, taking Maria’s hand. “But it had been worth it. Every single moment with you, with you and Monica.”

Maria had to fight back the tears. She felt almost… jealous of her past self, for managing to form such an incredible bond with someone. The sense of loss was getting deeper as well.

“Do you still want to come with me? Despite all the risks? It might be years before we come back to Earth.”

Carol locked eyes with Maria. “More than anything.” The certainty in her voice did not leave place for arguing. Maybe all was not lost after all.

“The woman you loved… she might never be back completely. I don’t want you to get your hopes up, there are probably things I will never remember.”

“I know.” Carol squeezed Maria’s hand. “But to be honest, at your core, I think you’re still the Maria I knew. Selfless, brave, and so goddamn strong.”

“One last question then.” She waited a second to show Carol how important this was to her. “Would you leave a battle at an instant notice if Monica had to be protected? Even if it meant leaving me behind?” Maria had to know. She needed to be absolutely certain before making this decision.

Carol’s eyes showed signs of conflict, but when she looked at Maria again, she was resolute. “I would. If you ordered me.”

Maria nodded. “Then I guess it’s her decision to make. Whether she wants to stay here or come with me.”

Carol looked at her like she was an idiot. “I don’t think the question needs to be asked.” She then looked at something behind Maria. “Right, Trouble?”

There was a gasp and Monica appeared at the entrance of the kitchen, approaching the table while shuffling her feet.

“What did we say about eavesdropping, Trouble?”

“That it’s not polite and to not do it,” Monica grumbled. “But you guys were talking about me!”

The two women looked at each other and sighed – they _had been_ talking about Monica, denying it wouldn’t help.

“We were. But that doesn’t mean you should have done it,” Maria explained.

“Okay. Sorry.” Monica marked a pause. “Does that mean I can’t come with you?”

“It doesn’t. In fact, I wanted to ask you: do you want to come with me? I could be dangerous and scary, and you might not see your friends for a long time.”

“I will be with you?” Maria nodded. Monica then asked Carol. “Will you be there too?”

Carol glanced at Maria. “If your mother wants me, I will be.”

“Then I want to come.”

And just like that, it was settled. Talos was more than pleased to get to know more humans, and Talos’ daughter got a playmate out of it.

Three days of preparation and a few goodbyes later, Monica was clutching Carol’s and her mother’s hands while getting on the ship.

Maria and Carol took place at the commands of the ship, Monica sitting just behind them.

“Ready?” Maria asked the pair.

“Yeah, let’s go! I wanna see space!”

They all chuckled at Monica’s enthusiasm.

Over the roar of the engines, Maria mouthed the question again to Carol. Carol's only answer was a wink and smile.

And if a single tear rolled down Maria’s cheek when she saw the wonder in Monica’s eyes when they left the atmosphere? Well, it’s not ours to tell.

All she knew was, they were going to be alright.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't hesitate to notify me if there is any mistake!  
> As usual, feel free to send me prompts on here or on tumblr, at alexdumas-ghost!


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